"Had Jordan actually
entered into such a major arms-supply relationship
with the Soviets, this would have had a significant adverse impact on
U.S. national defense interests and on U.S.-Jordanian relations."

Documents

US Department
of State investigation files reveal the American Israel Public Affairs
Committee's (AIPAC) director received classified US national defense
information. In 1975 the Ford administration
tried to sell improved Hawk anti-aircraft missiles to Jordan
and duly sent notification
containing classified Department of Defense data to the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee. AIPAC's
Director Morris Amitay reviewed the classified
document after being informed "secretly by aides of Senator Clifford P.
Case, Republican of New Jersey, and Representative Jonathan B. Bingham,
Democrat of New York" according to the New York Times.

According to
criminal investigation files released on January 20, 2012, this
disclosure to AIPAC was "unauthorized" and included the dollar amounts
and quantitative configurations of the missile system. The State
Department considered "The specific details of Jordan's military
equipment needs are information provided us in confidence by that
government. The classification of the documents in question was, in our
view, substantively proper."

Amitay
and AIPAC quickly mounted a massive campaign in opposition to the
missile sale, telling constituent public pressure groups that the
weapons were capable of "providing cover for offensive operations
against Israel." Jordan subsequently considered acquiring a similar
system from the Soviet Union. According to the US Department of State,
"Had Jordan actually entered into such a major arms-supply relationship
with the Soviets, this would have had a significant adverse impact on
U.S. national defense interests and on U.S.-Jordanian relations."
The Defense Department letter is still classified.

The US State
Department advised the Justice Department on the feasibility of criminally prosecuting Amitay.
"With the public disclosure of the information having already occurred,
the authorization of its release for the purpose of prosecution would
not be expected to cause damage with our relations with Jordan." However
Amitay was never charged and continued to serve as director of AIPAC
until he resigned 1980 to establish an Israel-oriented political action
committee in Washington

Author
Norman F. Dacey, chairman of the American Palestine
Committee, mounted an unsuccessful campaign to have the
perpetrators of the classified information incident criminally
prosecuted. A March 30, 1976 letter to Adolph Dubs,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern and South Asian
Affairs asks, "did you initiate action to discover the identity
of the individual's) responsible for the violation and to
institute appropriate action to punish the violator?" On
April 29, 1976 the State Department forwarded Dacey's letter to
the Criminal Division of the US Department of Justice. "A
notice of sale is normally not considered by the Department of
Defense to require classification and protection...I would
appreciate any comments you could offer on the issues presented
by the letter..." On May 19, 1976 the State Department
told Dacey "we consulted with the Justice Department informally
after receipt of your first letter and, at their request,
transmitted it to them for further consideration. The matter is
still under review in the Justice Department, which expects to
provide you with a direct response in the near future." On June
22, 1976 Dacey responded, "While we are certain that you have not
intended to give the appearance of exhibiting disdain for public
inquiries courteously submitted, the lack of any satisfactory
response leaves us with no alternative to that conclusion.
We do not wish to proceed publicly under sections
2383
and
2384 but you appear to leave us with no other course."
On June 16, 1976 Dacey again pressures the State Department. "We
have had no response....There has been a flagrant violation of
the U.S. Criminal Code." On June 25, 1976, the State Department
advised Dacey, "We are not aware that any Department of State
official has failed to meet his obligations under applicable law
and regulation regarding this document."

November 4, 1976 US Department
of State letter to the Assistant Attorney General of the
Criminal Division and Director of the FBI. The letter
responds to Department of Justice questions sentto the State Department on July
21, 1976.

"It is uncontested that the
Department of Defense is the originating agency for the
correspondence in question..." "The material appears to
have been properly classified...the unauthorized disclosure of
information on the numbers and value of important defense
systems acquired by a foreign government could reasonably be
expected to cause damage to that government's confidence in the
United States as its major weapons supplier and thus cause
damage to a significant aspect of our foreign relations. The
specific details of Jordan's military equipment needs are
information provided us in confidence by that government. The
classification of the documents in question was, in our view,
substantively proper."

"With the public disclosure of the
information having already occurred, the authorization of its
release for the purpose of prosecution would not be expected to
cause damage with our relations with Jordan."